Well, us country girls would have said first..'don't freak':))Which is hard when something is a cherished quilt like that. What I would have suggested is rinsing good w/a hose outside, then roll it back into a clothes basket because of the wet weight. Then I would have tossed it into the bathtub w/detergent and soaked it for 24hrs...you would have been surprised how great it would look by then. If there would be any stains left or marks...you gently scrub fabric to clean...then rinse, rinse, rinse. I would then tell you to hang it outside on the line...rinse w/the hose. The sun would kill anything bacteria wise on it...I know this might rock the world for some over this...but it is 'country wise' where we have barn fulls of that 'stuff' and plenty of mud.............:))Skeat